Persona 4: Disinclination
by Sweetbred
Summary: Two young men. One distant and the other lacking in self worth. They will be forced to live together for one year in a small town. During that year, a series of unexplained murders happen and threaten the peace of the town. Will they conquer their fears, find out the truth, and put an end to the murders? Probably not.
1. Chapter 0: Prologue

A.N.: After giving it much thought, I have decided to do a fan fic on the Persona series. This story is going to be self contained and stick the canon as much as possible so don't expect any Persona 3 characters making an appearance or anything like that. I will make changes when necessary but that's as far as I go. Also, please leave a review if you like and please be rather critical. This is my first story and I would like to see what I did right and what I did wrong. I'm expecting that I got more wrong than right though.

Disclaimer: I do not own Persona nor am I making money off this. I will take this down if Atlus wishes it so.

* * *

_Drip... Drip... Drip..._

The black haired teen was planning on doing this for quite sometime. Yet, he still was uncertain about it. He was hesitant to begin with and that hasn't changed now as well. He was resting in the white porcelain tub for about an hour now and still hasn't done anything but sit there and contemplate on whether he was truly sure about doing it. Thinking on whether or not there was any reason not go through with it. Few people have called him an indecisive prick for reasons like this but that's because very few people know him to begin with. Only his "Mother" and "Father" and the occasional classmate who would ask him for his notes were people he could consider "friends" and even that's stretching it. His parents had barely given him any mind since they had adopted him and he was convinced that they only adopted him out of pity. They kept pestering him about what he wants to do with his life and the answer is… "Sigh…"

_Drip… Drip… Drip…_

He knew deep inside that he probably had no reason to be unhappy with his life. After all, his parents were rich and he lived in a rather quaint mansion which prompted offers from his classmates to visit. Rejection soon followed after those offers since he knew they had an ulterior motive behind it. Eventually, everyone stopped talking to him altogether. He had convinced himself that was better off. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and months turned into years. Each day was the same as the last and that showed no signed of changing. The lack of interaction wasn't necessarily the cause for his unhappiness but rather of what his purpose is. Or lack thereof. Working day after day, dealing with people he didn't really care for, taxes. To what end? For what reason? These questions have plagued him for years and has yet to have died down.

There was a knock on the door. The voice of his Japanese mother echoed through the door.

"Robert, once you're finished, would you mind to visit me and your father in the living room? There is something we need to discuss about our business vacation and it involves you."

_Drip… Drip… Drip…_

He retracted the box cutter knife and did what he was asked.

* * *

The silver haired teen heaved a heavy sigh as he closed the door to his bedroom. _Another town? Even though we just moved to this one? _He thought to himself as sat on his small couch. A couch that has been moved around more than the average couch should. The owner was named Yu Narukami. He had just been told by his parents that he would be moving in five days to a small town called Inaba for the next year. He was used to moving but this time, he would be leaving by himself as his parents had to leave because of "business reasons." They always tend to do this whenever an opportunity presents itself to them as they desired to be at the very top.

"You must always strive for perfection, Yu. For if you don't take that chance, someone else will." His father's word echoed through his head. He admitted that his words do indeed hold water. However, if it means caring little about the people close to you and working so hard that your hair turns grey by the time your thirty-seven years old, then he would rather be in second place. He understands his intentions but doesn't agree with his methods. He tried talking to him about it but gave up once he realized that he wasn't going to change. Regardless, he decided to start packing for the trip since he knows that he isn't going to get out of it. He would be living with his uncle named Ryotaro Dojima, who he hasn't seen since he was in diapers. His wife and Yu's mother's sister, Chisato, died in a few years back in a car accident that has yet to be resolved. It reminded him that his mother has two sisters. The other lived in America and he has yet to have heard about her from his mother. He wondered about what happened between the two that caused them to be distant.

After he had finished packing, he went to bed and fell asleep in a matter of seconds. He awoke with a small headache as he pondered about the dream he had. _What was with that dream? I remember ... a limo and a man with a nose. Was it real? It felt real enough but..._ His alarm clock went off and brought him back to reality. He decided to go on with the rest of his day as if nothing happened.


	2. Chapter 1: The Arrival

**A/N**: Well, here's the second chapter to Persona 4: Disinclination. Looking back, I'm kind of proud of the first chapter but I also feel like it could've been a whole lot better. This chapter, I'm much more proud of but I still feel a bit rueful about it. It's still not my best work but I do promise to strive for better work from this point on. Especially since the story is going to stray a bit off the beaten path after this chapter. Also, I should point out that I'm leaving several bits off since, face it, we're all Persona fans so you guys know what's going on. Another thing, when I said leave a review, I feel like that I had come across as desperate for reviews. It's not entirely necessary to leave one but if I'm doing something wrong then I do want someone to point that out and explain as to how I can improve. If no one reads this fic, that's fine. I'm doing this because I enjoy writing it and that's I really need. Lastly, if you guys want to see any pairings, let me know and I'll see what I can do. The ones that I have on right now aren't going to change. Okay, that should be everything for now. Please enjoy the chapter.

**?-?**

**?**

Tranquility is the word that I would use to describe how I'm feeling at the moment. A sense of peace, a place where my troubles seem non-existent. A place that feels like it has separated itself from reality and untouched by society. A place where… wait a minute, where the hell am I anyway? I take a quick glance around the room only to realize that I am no longer in the cabin I was riding in only moments ago. The silver-haired individual was nowhere to be seen and in his place are two… "unique" individuals. The one sitting in front of me behind a table is a nearly bald old man with a bigass nose and a permanent smile that can only be considered creepy. He appears to be wearing a black suit and his eyes were bloodshot. To the right side is a beautiful woman with blonde hair, wearing a blue outfit while also holding a book in her hands. I… don't think my dreams have ever been "this" weird. Actually, now that I think about it, what exactly is this place? We seem to be moving so I guess I'm in a car. Quite a long one aswell so perhaps maybe even a limo. The seats are blue velvet and a bar sits to my left. The entire interior is illuminated by a dark bluish color and I'm not even sure if we have a driver or not. The windows don't help pinpoint where I am because it's covered by fog. I turn my gaze to the creepy old man in front of me who still has that grin. He begins to speak. "Welcome, my dear young man, to the Velvet Room. A place that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Only those who are bound to a contract may enter this room," he chuckles slightly. "My name is Igor. I am delighted to make your acquaintance." He turns to his left. "This is my assistant who is also a resident of this room."

"My name is Margaret. I will be accompanying you along your journey." Wait, _my_ _journey_? What is she even talking about? Before I even began to say anything, the old man starts talking to me again.

"Do not be alarmed for you are fast asleep in the real world." Huh, so I _am_ dreaming. Yet, I don't feel like I really am though. It feels far too real to be a dream but that's what it is, _isn't it?_ "Now, why don't you introduce yourself to us?"

I'm not too sure about revealing my name to strangers but if it's a dream then why should I give a shit? "My name is Robert Zax." Robert Zax. Was always a strange name but I like it well enough.

"Hmm, interesting indeed. Now, let's take look into your future, shall we?" He held his over hand over the table and cards magically appeared out of nowhere. He sees my rather surprised expression and chuckles a bit. "Do you believe in fortune telling?" I nod slightly and he proceeds to use the cards to tell me about my future. Basically, something bad will happen when I arrive at my destination and then there will be some mystery that I have to solve and shit. Then I sign a contract and come back here and if I don't solve it, the future will be lost or something.

"So where do you fit in? Is that all you guys are here for?"

"Not exactly. Our duty is to provide assistance to our guest to make sure our guests succeed in their journey." He waves his hand over the cards and they disappear. "We will discuss the more minute details another time. But for now you must know that you are not the only who will be going along this journey. For there is another guest who will also be accompanying you. The two of you will be working towards the same goal so please keep that in mind. Until we meet again, farewell…" My vision begins to waver before I am able to ask who exactly is this other guest they were referring to. The next thing I know…

**4/11-Yasoinaba Station**

**Cloudy-Afternoon**

"Hey, wake up. The train is about to make its stop." A calm voice is the first thing I hear when I return to consciousness. A slight headache present. I open my eyes slowly in order to see who was the culprit. Sure enough, the silver-haired teen from before was shaking my shoulder in an effort to wake me up. He's quite handsome, I have to say. His gray bowl haircut with his gray eyes make for a lovely combination. He appears to be taller than me and he's wearing a black jacket with a gray turtleneck shirt underneath and black pants to boot. I move slightly to show him that I'm awake. He moves back a little and nods. I get up and head towards the door of our cabin and head on outside. As I leave the station, I hear him stopping right next to me. He takes out his phone to check something before closing it again. We stand in there in silence as I remember why I'm here in the first place. _Way to go, mom and dad. Leave me to some stranger that I haven't even met before._ I curse a little under my breath. They told me that he would be at the station when I'd arrived but lo and behold, there was no one there. I stick my hands into my brown trousers as I waited for my uncle to arrive.

"So, how're you doing?" Due to the rather long silence, I jump a little at his words. I learned Japanese from my mother in the moments when she actually had time to interact with me. She didn't teach me long so I decided to learn it in my free time after school. Not perfect, but I know enough to survive here.

"Why do you care?" I wasn't really in the mood to make small talk. If he was offended, his face didn't show it. He just gave a frustrated sigh and checked his phone again. Looking around, the town was very quiet. I guess that's what you should expect when it comes to small towns like this.

"Hey! Over here!" I look around to find the origin of the voice. A man wearing dark gray shirt and a red tie is standing near the parking lot with what appeared to be his truck. The teen next to me approaches him. "Ah, there you are." He sticks his hand out and the teen shook it with his. "I'm Ryotaro Dojima. I'll be looking after you for the rest of the year. Let's see, I'm your mother's younger brother and that about sums it up."

The teen responds casually. "I'm Yu Narukami. Nice to meet you."

"We've met before you know. Hell, I still remember when you were in diapers," Dojima said it without a hint of shame. He looks around for a bit before looking at me and saying "Hey! Are you going to introduce yourself or what?"

Why would I? Does he believe I'm his nephew's friend or… _No… That can't be… _As I approach him, Yu was looking at me with a curious look on his face. Before I knew it, Dojima spoke again and confirmed my suspicions. "Is that anyway to treat your relatives?"

… _What!? Wait! Does that mean? _I look at Yu who also shocked at the revelation._ That sort of reaction must be rare for him._ He turns to Dojima. "Dojima? Are you saying that…"

"It's true. This man right here is your cousin and his mother called me to tell me I had to care of him while they were away. So, he's also staying with me." The two of us? We arrive on the same day for nearly the same reason? This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder. "Is this going to be a problem?" _Yes! Or maybe? I don't know and that's the problem! Put me with not only my uncle that I've never heard of before but also my cousin who I've also never heard of before and… just… shit._

"Oh that's right." We both look at him with curiosity. "This here is my daughter." He steps to the side and reveals his little daughter with a white turtleneck and a pink sleeveless dress. _Man, what is it with people here with their turtlenecks… Wait, What!? Another cousin! Are you freaking joking! They didn't tell me that! They didn't say "uncle and daughter", they just said uncle! How could they forgot about their niece? _"Come on Nanako. Introduce yourself to your cousins."

"...'lo." She goes back to being behind her father's legs.

"What are you so shy for? Ow! Haha." _Sigh… I just wanna go to bed now. Unless another cousin is secretly living under it. That wouldn't surprise me by this point._ "Well, anyways. We should be going now." The two Dojimas went on ahead. We both glance at each other before I decide to leave as well. As I was catching was up to them, some random chick passed by me.

"Hey." I turn to see her with her hand sticking out. She has a piece of paper in that hand. "You dropped this." She was wearing a white shirt and had black hair that went down to her chin. She had checkered skirt going on as well and black-striped white stockings. I take it without saying a word and go towards the car. She gives an angry grunt before speaking to my… ugh, cousin. "What's his problem? Stupidjerk."

"I'm not sure myself." That's all I hear before entering the car and closing the door. _So, a new start… a new place, a new family, a new… life. Will it be alright? I sure as hell hope so._ Yu joined us after saying his goodbyes and we went on our way.

**4/11-Dojima Residence**

**Rain-Afternoon**

_So, he's my cousin? Sigh… I hope he's just in a bad mood because he can't expect anyone to be friends with him with that attitude. Hell, I don't even know his name and I'm expected to live and get along with him._ I've never really judged books by their cover. So perhaps the same should still apply to him. I glance at him. He's currently reading a book and I can barely make out the title, "The Grapes of Wrath". I just noticed that he's wearing a gray hoodie with brown trousers. Not a good combination, I must say. He has brown eyes and was... well, kinda scrawny. His black hair is short and messy and… is just overall bland in appearance. _Time will tell if we'll get along. Though in the end, it doesn't even matter since we'll never see each other again after this year. Like always. Damn, I can still hear her crying._

We arrive at the house. I still feel car sick. We all take a seat at the coffee table in the middle of the room. Dojima brings us all something to drink as we have a toast for our arrival. I noticed that Dojima got a soda instead of the beer he was looking at earlier. "Alright, let's have a toast." We all take a drink. My soda tastes rather bland. Dojima turned to me. "So, you're here because your parents were working overseas, was it?"

"That'd be the case, sir."

"Hey, come on now. No need to be formal. Just call me Dojima. I don't want to feel any older than I already am. That same applies to you as well, Robert." Robert nods. He still looks a bit tired. "Well, it just me and Nanako here so it'd be nice to have you guys around. So make yourselves at home."

"I'll do that."

"Good. Well, now let's eat." We reach for our chopsticks as Dojima's cellphone goes off. Dojima sighs and answers the phone. "Uh huh. …Alright I'm on my way." He hangs up. "Looks like I made the right choice to skip the booze." _Drinker and smoker. Not a good example for the kids._ He heads out and has a small discussion with Nanako about the laundry before leaving. She turns on the television. Something she is probably used to doing. I ask her about her father.

"He… investigates crime scenes and such. My dad's a detective."

The news talks about an affair going on between a City council secretary, Taro Namatame and a female reporter, Mayumi Yamano. His wife, Misuzu Hiiragi, will pursue damages. Understandably, Nanako gets bored and changes the channel. A commercial for a supermarket called Junes comes on.

"Come see yourself, and get in touch with our products! Everyday's great at your Junes! "

"Everyday's great at your Junes! " I turn to Nanako who was singing the jingle. I decided to sing as well.

"Everyday's great at your Junes! " Nanako giggled at me. She is adorable. She turned to Robert who was too busy eating his food. He looked up to see Nanako who was looking at him expectantly. Caught off guard, he looked at me for help. I looked away while whistling. He eventually caved in.

"E-everyday's goo- I mean great, at y-your Junes. " He obviously screwed up but Nanako didn't seem to notice or care as she giggled all the same. He gave a small smile.

**4/11-Dojima Residence**

**Rain-Nighttime**

After dinner, we head up to our room that we're supposed to be sharing to unpack and rest. The room was mostly empty when we arrived. A small couch sits next to the window. A storage shelf to the right of the door and a small CRT TV next to it. A study desk lies next to the couch and blue futon was placed at the corner of the room. Robert was quiet for most of the unpacking. I decide to at least know his name. "You know cousin, you haven't really told me your name."

"Please don't call me cousin. At least, not now. I still have a headache." He looks around the room. He claps his hands. "So, who's sleeping on the bed and who's sleeping on the couch?"

"Futon."

"Right, right. I know what that is. I'm just used to sleeping on a bed." Understandably so. I decide to take the futon while he sleeps on the couch. We lay there in uncomforting silence. The rain making most of the noise as it patters on the window. It's 10:45 P.M. "Robert Zax," I hear him say. I turn to him as he's looking out the window. Blue colored blankets that he brought with him were covering him. "I already heard your name so you don't have to say yours, but… yeah."

"I see."

"What?"

"...Nevermind." I decide to let the conversation end since it was going nowhere. Robert gave a quick "Hm" before turning to his back towards me.

"Hey."

"Yeah?"

"I'm… sorry for acting like a jackass. I guess I'm still feeling a bit bitter towards my parents. For leaving me here, for never introducing you guys to me, and…" He stops before finishing. _I see. So I'm not the only one with trouble with his parents. _I look at him. I could hear faint snoring suggesting he was time passed before I was asleep too.

**4/12-Yasogami High School**

**Rain-Morning**

"...You calling me a loser?" I was waiting outside of class 2-2 so our teacher, Kinshiro Morooka, could introduce us separately. Yu went in first and got shat on by Mr. Morooka, calling him a loser and that kind of shit. Before that, he went on and on about girls and perverts, practically calling everyone in the room a whore. _How did he become a teacher?_ Regardless, the whole room gasped a bit when they heard Yu's retort.

"Hmph. That's it, you're on my shit list, effective immediately. Listen up, this town is miles away from your big city full of perverts and assholes. You better not think about getting involved with the girls here, let alone abusing them!" He continues to go on and on with his rant. Finally, some girl asks if he can sit next to her. After Yu took his seat, he begins to mention me. "As if one sack of shit wasn't enough, we another transfer student from the states staying with us as well. Just goes to show that his country wanted to get rid of him as fast as possible and we have to be ones forced to deal with him. Now, get your ass in here!"

Hesitantly, I proceed to enter the room.I write my name on chalkboard before I turn to face the classroom and glance around the room for a bit. Posters were littered on the back wall and little compartments were placed at the bottom. Large windows on the left side of the room revealed nothing due to the thick fog in the area. The entire room was filled with people in generic school uniforms, all of their eyes focusing on me. _I feel like I'm going to scream anytime soon. _Looking around, only two things stand out to me and those were the two girls in the middle of the room. The first one is a cute girl with short brown hair and brown eyes to match. She has a green sports jacket on with buttons pinned on to it. She has a mini skirt as well, showing off her… lovely legs. I notice that Yu is sitting next to her, so I guess she was the one who spoke up about having him sit next to her. The second girl was the one sitting in front of her. She wore a red cardigan over her school uniform and had a red barrette on as well. Long raven hair flowed down over and behind her shoulders and her pantyhose was anything but unwelcome._ Holy crap, she's gorgeous._ Her _beautiful_ black eyes are looking at me inquisitively. _Shit! I must have been staring! _I look away as quickly as I could, though that may have made things worse.

"Well? I haven't got all day asshole, so are you going to introduce yourself or what?" _…Come on man! Think of something!_

"...Y-yo…"

"What the hell was that? Is that all you got to say!? Are you making fun of me or what? Well, guess what!? As of now, you're on top of my shit list asshole! Now sit your ass down!" _...Well, it could've been worse I suppose. The only seat left though is next to the… red… girl… fuck. _I made my way to my seat and sat down. _Oh well. This school year can only go up for now I suppose. I mean, it can't get any worse, right?_

"Psst!" _Wait, what was that?_ I turn to the red girl but she seems busy listening to the lecture. I look behind her and realize that it was the green girl whispering to me. "He's the absolute worst huh?" I nod slightly. "Rotten luck that you have to be in this class. Oh well, we just have to hang in there for a year so we should make the most of it, right?"

"I guess." _Huh, I haven't really conversed with many girls now that I think about it. Most of the time, it's just a bunch of pompous assholes at dinner parties my parents usually have. I usually ignored them and stayed in my room when they were around but occasionally they would ask me about school, friends, the like. Purely out of pity and the answer was always the same._

I decide to pay attention for a little bit before zoning out for the rest of lecture. _Nothing's really changed._ Before I knew it, the school day was over. A few girls went up to Yu and introduced themselves. _Only his first day and already girls are trying to get into his pants. Lucky bastard. Hm? The loudspeaker is saying something._

"Attention, all teachers must come to faculty office immediately for a staff meeting. All students must remain in their classrooms and are not leave the school grounds until further notice."

Mr. Morooka groaned a bit and told us to stay put before heading out. _Is that sirens?_ A couple of students head over to the window, though the fog is too thick to see anything though. I decide to stay put and wait until we got an all clear. One of the students approaches the girl next to me. "H-hey Yukiko-san. Is it true that announcer was staying at your family's inn?" _Yukiko is her name and her family owns an inn? Interesting._ She looks down with a gloomy look on her face.

"I can't discuss such things."

"Yeah I guess not." He goes back to the window where some other classmates were hanging around.

"Man how long is this gonna take?" The girl with the green jacket approached Yukiko and she seemed to happy to see her.

"There's no telling." The girl in green proceeded to complain about the announcement before asking Yukiko if she tried something involving rainy nights. When she said she hasn't, the other girl said a student was going around saying Mayumi was his soulmate. _What kind of weirdo would announce something like that to the public?_ The loudspeaker came on and gave us the okay to leave. I left the class and went outside.

Not really stoked about leaving quickly, I decide to take a book out and read for a bit as I leaned on to the pillar at the gate. As I was reading, a student was hiding behind the pillar opposite of me. _His uniform looks different from ours. He goes to a different school maybe? Looking at him, his eyes are pitch-black without any pupils visible. His hair… is like mine sort of. Short and messy but mine is slightly longer. Would that make me the more feminine one? Wait, what am I going on about? Either way, it's kinda creepy._

I decide to look at the entrance and see Yu and the two colorful girls leaving with him. _Seriously, how does he do it? _As they walked towards the entrance, and towards me, the girl in green notices me and was about to say something before she was cut off by the weird kid who approached them. "Hey you're Yuki right? You wanna go out somewhere?"

Yukiko looks a bit startled by his sudden appearance. "What? W-who are you?" Two random students nearby saw the scene and began whispering to each other.

"Hey, who's that guy? Does he go to our school?"

"Nevermind that. He's going for Yukiko-san? Man you think he would until she was alone to make his move."

"I bet you a can of Tap he gets knocked out."

"No bet. Haven't you heard how difficult the Amagi challenge is?" _Amagi challenge? Is that her last name? That does mean this happens a lot? Damn. Wait, that guy's saying something._

"So are you coming or not?"

"I'm not going."

"Fine!" He took off running. _Wuss._

"What did he want from me?"

"What did he want? Obviously he was asking you out on a date."

"Huh? Really?" _Whoosh._

"You didn't know? Sheesh." She looked at me again.

"Hey! Are you joining us or what?" I walk over to their group. "You shouldn't be walking home alone on your first day. We don't mind you joining us, you know."

"Oh, uh thanks." _Is she doing it out of pity? Did Yu mention me or something? Or- wait, wouldn't it be better to just ask? _"Why though?"

"We're curious about you is all. We don't get many transfer students, let alone many foreign exchange students." Well, it IS a small town so that shouldn't surprise me. "Oh, I nearly forgot. I'm Chie Satonaka. Nice to meet you." She held her hand out. I shook it.

"Right, I'm Robert Zax. A pleasure."

"So, what were you doing? We were going to ask you to join us but we couldn't find you."

"Oh… I-I was just… around."

"Come on now, what kind of explanation is that?" _I… don't know. Unconscious action I suppose? Like some times how your brain goes into autopilot and you do things without thinking. Yeah, like that I suppose. It's just something I'm used to doing._ "Ah right." She pulls her friend to her side. "This is Yukiko Amagi." _Already knew that but after seeing that creep, it's probably best to not mention that._

"Hello. I'm sorry about this being so sudden."

"R-right. Don't worry about it." Chie perked up a little and asks Yu a question.

"Hey, do you guys know each other?" Yu answered before I could.

"Yeah. We're co- I mean, we're related." _Perhaps I went too far with the whole "don't call me cousin" thing._

A student appeared with a bike._ Wait, isn't that the guy who crashed earlier?_ He had brown spiky hair and had orange headphones around his neck. He just wore a regular high school uniform.

"Yo, Yukiko-san. Turned down another lovelorn fool huh? Man you're cruel... you got me the same way last year."_ Man, she does get a whole lot of offers. Does she reject every single one?_

"I don't recall doing that."

"For real? Then do you want to hang out sometime?"

"I'd rather not." _Ouch._

"That'll teach me to get my hopes up. Anyway, you two better not pick on the transfer students too much," he said before riding away on his bike.

Chie yelled out. "We're just curious, is all!" Yukiko turns to us.

"I'm sorry for dragging you guys into this."

"Come on! Everyone is staring…" Chie walked on ahead with Yu following in pursuit. Yukiko and I glance at each other for a bit before moving on.

**4/12-Somewhere in Inaba**

**Cloudy-Afternoon**

After leaving the school, Yu and I told the two about our reasons for coming here. We stop by a bulletin board next to some farmland. Green hills were in the distance. After telling them, Chie was a bit skeptical.

"So wait. The two of you, who neither have met before, arrived on the same day to live with the same person and all of this is because both of your parents had to leave on some business trip?"

Yu spoke for the both of us. "Trust me. We were surprised by it as well but yeah, that does seem to be the case."

"Huh. So let me guess, you guys are leaving the same day as well?"

"I'm not sure. When do you leave Robert?"

"Huh? Uh, I leave… April 29th. What about Yu?" _Oh god, that was lame._

"Actually, I leave by the end of March. So there you go."

"You guys didn't know that? You guys live together and neither of you know something as basic as that?" Me and Yu didn't say anything. We decide to use the silence as an answer to her question. "Oh, uh… hehe…" Chie, having just realized about the bleak atmosphere, decided to change the subject. She looked around for a bit before turning to us. "So, there isn't much to see or do here. Which is nice, but there isn't much we can show to people outside. We do have the Amagi Inn however, it is what keeps this town going." Yukiko finally decided to say something after remaining silent for sometime.

"Chie, it's… just an old inn . I don't think that's entirely true."

Chie turns to Yu and gives him a quick smirk. "So tell me, you think Yukiko's cute huh?"_ Where did that come from?_

"I don't know." Yu turns to me and gives me a teasing smile. "What do you think Robert?" _Son of a…_ Yu and Chie were anxiously awaiting my reaction, even Yukiko has a curious look on her face. _Damn it, you're not helping the situation in any way. _I look away with flushed cheeks and give a nervous response.

"Y-yes, I t-think s-so." _Oh shit. That came off as too damn nervous and obvious. _Yu turns to Chie and gives her a response.

"Yeah, I think so too." _Smooth as… something smooth._

"Hah! I knew it!" _Don't sell yourself short you know. You're pretty cute as well. Hm? Odd, I could've sworn I saw Chie's face turn from a happy expression to that of annoyance. It was just for a second but it was there._

"Come on… Don't start this again…"

"She's really popular at school but she's never had a boyfriend. Kinda strange huh?" _She rejects every offer she's ever been given so that's not really that surprising. It's like being surprised at… at… something witty. I don't freaking know._

"You shouldn't believe that, it's not true that I'm popular or that I've ever had a boyfriend. Wait! What I'm trying to say is that I don't need a boyfriend. Geez, Chie…"

"Haha… Sorry, sorry. But it's our first time meeting someone from out of this country and you hardly said a word. ...Hey, what's that?" Just up ahead was what appeared to be a crime scene. Two housewives were gossiping about how a dead body was hanging from an antenna. Chie and Yukiko are looking kind of nervous while Yu is as calm as always. _Actually, if this a crime scene wouldn't Dojima be her- oh there he is._

"Hey, what're you guys doing here?"

"We were just passing by, Uncle," Yu said.

"Uncle?" Chie said with a surprised look on her face.

"I thought that'd be the case. That damn principal, we told him not let people through here. At any rate, you three better stop wandering around and head home." An officer came out of the crime scene and went behind the bushes to vomit. "Adachi! How long are you gonna be acting like a rookie!?"

A pitiful voice could be heard from behind the bushes. "Sorry sir."

"Sigh… Go wash your face Adachi." The two head back towards the crime scene.

"Hey Yukiko, let's go to Junes another time."

"Agreed."

"Well, we best be off. Starting tomorrow guys, let's do our best." We both say our goodbyes before heading home. Yu starts to talk about them.

"Well, they seem nice. What do you think?"

"Yeah I suppose." _I kinda wished that Yukiko girl could speak up a bit more. But I guess that's just how she is._

**4/12-Dojima Residence**

**Cloudy-Nighttime**

We both arrive safe and sound at… our home. Dojima has yet to arrive but I guess that's to be expected. Nanako was still watching TV as usual. We both greet her and decide that we need dinner. I ask Yu. "So, should we order something or do we raid the fridge for a small snack?" Yu smiled a bit at my suggestion.

"No need. I'll check the fridge and see if I can make us something to eat." Nanako overhears this.

"You can cook!?" Yu's smile grew wider at her question. He gave a nod before checking the fridge for something to eat. _He can cook? Well, this ought to be interesting._ I've dabbled with cooking with before and from what I heard… it's not that bad. Not great but hey, at least I'm not god awful and that's good enough for me. Curious, I decide to take look in the fridge before Yu does. Inside is ground beef, potatoes, onions, a clock, carro- ...I look again. Ground beef, potatoes, onions, a clock, and carrots. ..._Something just doesn't belong here._ After taking out the clock, Yu decided to make Nikujaga with some white rice. Meanwhile, I waited at the the coffee table with Nanako. Currently, the news is on. An old news anchor appears on screen.

"Our top story tonight concerns a bizarre case in a quiet suburb in the Inaba region. A woman was found dead and hanging from an antenna. This woman has been identified as Mayumi Yamano, a twenty-seven year old announcer from a local TV station. The initial results from the Inaba Police Department reveals…"

"Th-the Inaba Police Department! Th-that's where dad works!" _She must be worried._

"Hey. I'm sure he'll be alright so there's nothing to worry about."

"I know. It's his job so this happens." _Strong girl._

"It's unclear whether or not if this is a homicide or an accident." _Pretty sure it's murder._ "Due to the thick fog within the area, the plans to canvass the area have been delayed until tomorrow." _Could it have anything to with the affair going on? Damn, of course all of this murder happens when we arrive. Just to say that, yes, it CAN get worse._

"They found her on the roof? That's scary."

"We'll be right back after these messages." The Junes commercial appears on TV to which she sings along in delight. Practically forgetting about the murder on TV. Yu yells from the kitchen.

"Guys it's ready!" Yu puts the dishes on the kitchen table. We all take a seat and dig in as fast as I can. Admittedly, the food was pretty damn good. even though it's a common meal to prepare.

"Robert."

"Hm?"

"You're supposed to say "itadakimasu" before eating."

"Really? I thought that's something said only by weird people on the Internet obsessed with Hentai."

"Robert! Not in front of Nanako!"

"Hey wh-"

"Nanako, don't ask until you're older please."

The rest of the evening went by a lot more peacefully in comparison. Yu scolded me for obvious reasons,_ I open my mouth before thinking all the time,_ and we all went to sleep. Well, Yu did. _...So, what now? I thought coming here will do something to me but in reality, nothing's changed. I still have no idea what to do with myself. I don't know where I'll be in twenty years or if I'll even be alive by then. ...Or even if I want to be… _I close my eyes and drift to sleep.

**?/?-?**

**?-?**

I'm in a dark room.

_Don't do it, please!_

I can't control my actions.

_Senpai, calm down!_

I only want one thing.

_No, you can't…_

I can hear them crying. Yet, I don't feel any guilt.

_Do something!_

I can't see what I'm doing. But I know what it is.

…

I'm in the process of killing someone.


End file.
